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State of the Economy
Topic Started: Dec 2 2004, 11:55 AM (228 Views)
ds9074
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Admiral
The Chancellor has given his report on the state of the British economy and Government finances. This is what he told the House of Commons;

*Extra £625m ($1.2bn) for operations in Iraq and security
*Budget deficit 2.9% of GDP
(6.5% Japan, 4.4% USA, 3.9% Germany, 3.7% France)
*Government debt 34.3% of GDP
(85% Japan, 55% Germany, 48% USA, 45% France)
*Growth 3-3.5%
*Inflation 1.2%
*Employment rate 75%
(71% USA, 69% Japan, 65% Germany, 63% France)
*Unemployment rate 2.7%
*Capital Gains tax cut from 40% to 10%
*Corporation tax cut from 33% to 30%
*Freezes in other taxes including fuel duties
*More money for childcare, education & science and pensioners.

The public finances are sound and we can afford our commitments in Iraq, the economy is growing steadily and inflation is low, record numbers of people are in work, taxes are not rising and more money is being made avaliable for key areas. How can a Government with such a record loose an election? I dont think they can.
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Admiralbill_gomec
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ds9074
Dec 2 2004, 10:55 AM
*Capital Gains tax cut from 40% to 10%
*Corporation tax cut from 33% to 30%

Congratulations!
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ds9074
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Blair and Brown are a shoe in for the next election, the have put policies in place that have a very wide appeal which translates to wide support.
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Fesarius
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Admiral
^^^
Much like our own economy, which is on the upswing. :)
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Admiralbill_gomec
UberAdmiral
... and has been, for the past three years or so.
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gvok
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Let's hope we see some reduction in the budget deficit then.
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Admiralbill_gomec
UberAdmiral
We did, last year.
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gvok
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It would also be nice to see a reduction in the national debt.
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Minuet
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Fleet Admiral Assistant wRench, Chief Supper Officer
Guys - this is about the state of Britian's economy - let's not turn it into another pissing match please???????? :banghead:
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Fesarius
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^^^
Britain's economy is still on the upswing, but not as much as that of the U.S.A. :)

Quote:
 
... and has been, for the past three years or so.

Correct. And it will continue to do so under the current Administration.
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ds9074
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We do have lower unemployment, lower debt and a lower deficit. You have slightly higher growth. Then again the policy here is one of steady growth, not growth maximisation. Interest rates rose this year because the Bank was worried the UK economy was growing too quickly. We havent had a recession here since the early 1990s so far at least it looks like a good policy.
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Admiralbill_gomec
UberAdmiral
Um, DS, our growth rate is about 40% higher than yours. That is not, "a little bit."

Also, I'd like to see the metrics y'all use to calculate "unemployment rate".
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ds9074
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Correct me if I am wrong but I thought US growth was running at about 3.9% a year and UK growth at 3-3.5%. Thats doesnt seem a massive difference.

The 2.7% unemployment figure is an internal UK figure based on unemployment benefit claims. The internationally comparable figure is 4.6%. Of course the Chancellor like the first one best!
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Admiralbill_gomec
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ds9074
Dec 2 2004, 11:45 PM
Correct me if I am wrong but I thought US growth was running at about 3.9% a year and UK growth at 3-3.5%. Thats doesnt seem a massive difference.

The 2.7% unemployment figure is an internal UK figure based on unemployment benefit claims. The internationally comparable figure is 4.6%. Of course the Chancellor like the first one best!

You don't add percentages to get a difference.

For example, a growth difference of 1% and 2% is not 1%, but rather 50%. Our quarterly growth is 3.9%, but averaged out over the past twelve months it is over 4%. Even 4% over 3% is a 33% faster growth rate.

Ah, 4.6% is more like it.
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ds9074
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When you look at one of our (UK's) main competitors in Germany and see them talking about 1.5% growth (they call that a "good" year), the differences between the US and UK seem less significant. Both are growing fairly strongly. Also as I understand your calcuation the difference between 3.5 and 3.9 would be about 10%, so it depends on the figures you take. Economics is a funny thing and it can change round quickly, in the early 1990s it was the UK that was in trouble and Germany was doing well, nevertheless if the current trend continues I was reading the UK will overtake Germany and become the largest economy in the EU in about 10 years or so.
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